Political candidates love to talk about priorities, but usually it’s only in a fuzzy “fight for what’s important” way. Talking about government’s priorities, after all, is sticky. It requires saying that A is more important than B, and that’s a pretty good way to get B’s fans mad at you. Keeping it all vague is […]

Washington Democrats’ desire for a state income tax is relentless. The national party symbol is the donkey, but perhaps Rick Astley is a more suitable inspiration for local Dems – they’re never gonna give up on a state income tax. As long as Washington remains one of nine states without an income tax, state Democrats […]

Seattle is rolling out its new “democracy voucher” program, and apparently it’s leaving residents a little confused. Does it surprise anyone that this bad idea is proving confounding? Seattle voters passed the tax-dollars-for-campaign-donations program by initiative, so they gave it an affirmative yes. That doesn’t mean they have any idea what the vouchers are when […]

All eyes were on the national election last week, understandably, but our state tallied some important results too. What will they mean for smarter government in 2017? Legislature: When legislators return to the capitol in January to tackle the remaining work on McCleary (realistically this will occupy almost the entirety of the Legislature’s attention), the […]

KIRO 97.3 host Dave Ross asked Rob about the city income tax on the ballot in Olympia. Supporters admit that it’s simply a way to try to get an income tax case before the state Supreme Court, with the eventual goal of a statewide progressive income tax. Dave Ross: “Whether you endorse this or not, […]

Who’s afraid of open contract negotiations? Clearly government employee unions are. They see open negotiations as a big threat, so they’re responding with threats. Spokesman-Review columnist Sue Lani Madsen, proving that columnists can do pretty good original reporting too, captured the not-so-subtle intimidation leveled at Lincoln County Commissioners last week. The commissioners want to allow […]

In the 2015 book Superforecasting, Dr. Philip Tetlock explored humans’ ability to predict future events (e.g., the price of oil, Russian military excursions, which cities ISIS would seize) and why some people are better forecasters than others. His research makes clear that people who are more ideological aren’t as good at crafting accurate forecasts. In […]

You have to give SEIU, one of the state’s largest public sector unions, one thing: it’s clever. SEIU has a talent for pushing self-interested ballot initiatives that sound like they’re noble and high-minded. Its latest, I-1501, is being pitched as an initiative about privacy and security. Supposedly the purpose of I-1501 is to “increase penalties […]

Tina Podlodowski, a former Seattle City Councilmember, is challenging Washington’s lone statewide Republican officeholder, Secretary of State Kim Wyman. Last week Podlodowski generated her first headlines of the campaign since her January announcement and acquitted herself so poorly that it will disqualify her in some minds. As is often the case when a media opportunity […]

Americans have a hang-up about being compelled to do things. It’s in our DNA. For instance, we have freedom of religion written into our constitution, but also freedom not to participate in any religion. The right not to be compelled to house soldiers was important enough that the Framers spelled it out in the Bill […]